You can't be president : the outrageous barriers to democracy in America / John R. MacArthur.

Includes indexes.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Problem #1 The Small Matter of Reading the Constitution 27 -- Problem #2 Parties You're Not Invited To 41 -- Problem #3 It's Really Expensive, or, You Don't Have $300 Million, Do You? 61 -- Problem #4 We Only Promote from Within 79 -- Problem #5 You're Tied Up At Home: A Story from Portsmouth, Rhode Island 103 -- Problem #6 You're Tied Up in the City: Lessons from Chicago 125 -- Problem #7 Your Horatio Alger Syndrome 139 -- Problem #8 "Where'd You Go To School Again?" 155 -- Problem #9 You Don't Look Good on TV ... The Tragedy of Consumer Choice 169 -- Problem #10 You Don't Have That Killer Instinct 189 -- Problem #11 I Rest My Case: The 2008 Election 215.

They say that every vote counts. But even if they're right, what about who, and what, you're voting for? If you're not rich, not an Ivy Leaguer, not in lockstep with Democratic or Republican ideology (which are a lot closer together than either party wants you to think), would you ever even have a chance at being a major candidate? The fact is, the entire system is rigged to keep the "mock" in "democracy," and MacArthur explains how this came to be--and what it means for the future of our country. Featuring case studies of candidates from Ned Lamont to Ralph Nader and sparing neither side of the political spectrum, it's a devastating exposé of the entrenched elites. From publisher description.